The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) have proposed a new method for guaranteeing parental consent to help protect children’s privacy online. The method involves “Privacy-Protective Facial Age Estimation” technology, which would scan an adult’s face to confirm their age before they’re able to consent on behalf a child.
Under Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act Rule (COPPA), online sites and services, such as games, must have consent from a parent before they can collect or use personal information from a child. Microsoft need your permission before your kid can set up a Minecraft account, for example.
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To guarantee an actual adult has provided that consent, the ESRB have partnered with Yoti, a “digital identity company”, and SuperAwesome, who develop technology to help other companies comply with parental verification requirements. SuperAwesome are owned by Epic Games.
Together they have created a technology which “analyzes the geometry of a user’s face to confirm that they are an adult”, according to the FTC. If the adult is deemed to be under the threshold of 25 years old, they would be unable to consent on behalf of the child.
The FTC are seeking public comment on the proposal, including…